From chips and doughnuts to meats and French fries, fried food is hard to resist. And it’s no wonder: Fried food delivers such crisp, delicious browning while keeping food moist and tender on the inside. But while fried food is incredibly tasty, it is also very unhealthy.
By cutting down on the intake of fried food or by choosing a different frying method, we are still able to enjoy fried food and stay healthy. In this article, we will get into these two cooking methods - deep-frying and air-frying . As both methods successfully delivered the kind of fried food, in look and in flavor somehow, that could hold its own if served up at a restaurant or takeout joint.
What is Deep-Fried ?
Any food cooked in hot fat is fried. The method of heat transference is the same whether there’s just a little fat in the pan (sautéing), the fat comes partway up the sides of the food (shallow-frying), or the fat completely envelops the food (deep-frying).
When food is added to hot oil (usually 350°F to 375°F), the moisture inside boils, but because oil and water don't mix, the food doesn't lose moisture, but rather, is steamed from the inside out. Browning is quick and thorough because the hot liquid fat delivers heat to even the smallest crevices on a food’s surface. Deep-fried food is usually more flavorful, but it also comes with more calories.
How Do Air Fryers Work?
An air fryer doesn't actually "fry. It cooks food by circulating hot air around it with a fan. This way, food is cooked by convection, which means it can approach the crispiness of fried food while using far less oil. But the intense hot air is also ideal for roasting and even allows you to prepare dishes you might otherwise cook on the grill.
The experts recommended using an air fryer when preparing frozen food, making cookies, and cooking bacon. In fact, you can cook almost anything in an air fryer like steaks, pizza, and french fries .
Yet, you'll still need a little oil — that's what the air heats to create the browning. And while you won't get the same level of deep golden brown as you would in a deep fryer, you do get the advantage of quickly cooked food with much less oil. Less oil means fewer calories.
- Taste - Although air fryers can give you a crispy exterior similar to a deep fryer, in terms of taste, the traditional deep fryer still does a better job.
- Less oil - The air fryer can fry without oil or very little, usually 70 to 80 percent lesser than deep-frying. Therefore, air fried foods are healthier.
- Versatility - For a deep fryer, you can only use it purely for deep-frying food. Air fryer can also bake , roast, grill, and carry out several different functions.
- Shorter Cooking Time - The cooking time for the deep fryer is much faster comparing to the air fryer. It takes 3 to 5 minutes to cook the fried food compared to air fryer 10 to 20 minutes to get the food ready.
- Cleaning - With little or no oil use, cleaning is a breeze for air fryers. On the contrary, you’ll need more effort to wash your deep fryer due to the excessive oil usage ande clean the kitchen counter due to the oil spill from the frying.
- Easy operate - Air fryer comes complete with a timer and you don’t have to attend to it while cooking.
